Driver suspected of DUI in crash near Escondido

ESCONDIDO  A suspected drunken-driver plowed into the back of a pickup stopped at a red light just outside the Escondido city limits late Thursday night, seriously injuring three people, authorities said.

The crash occurred about 11 p.m. on El Norte Parkway on the west side of the intersection with Nordahl Road, the California Highway Patrol said.

A 24-year-old San Marcos resident was driving a Toyota Tacoma pickup east on El Norte and failed to slow down as he approached the intersection, CHP Officer Jim Bettencourt said.

Bettencourt said the Tacoma slammed into the back of a Ford Ranger, which in turn rear-ended a van stopped for a red light.

The Tacoma driver, who was not wearing a seat belt, suffered major head injuries. He will face felony drunken-driving charges after he is released from the hospital, Bettencourt said.

The Ranger driver, a 24-year-old San Marcos woman, suffered cuts and other injuries and her passenger, a 23-year-old San Marcos man, suffered major internal injuries. The van driver, a 57-year-old San Diego man, was not injured.